2016ers to NRA: We'll stand firm

HOUSTON — Five months after the Sandy Hook rampage, thousands of gun enthusiasts descended here Friday with an unyielding message for their Republican politicians: Do not give an inch on the Second Amendment.

A succession of potential 2016 hopefuls — from Ted Cruz and Rick Santorum to Rick Perry and Bobby Jindal — were more than happy to comply.

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In person and via video, potential presidential candidates dutifully told pro-gun activists here for the National Rifle Association annual convention that they love guns and promised to always fight with the NRA.

Like the Conservative Political Action Conference in March, the NRA gathering is a vivid counterpoint to elements of the GOP pushing the party to soften its edges after its losses in November. It comes after Senate Republicans, joined by a handful of Democrats, blocked a Democratic plan calling for background checks on many gun sales. The defeat came even after the legislation was watered down to appease critics and amid fierce opposition from the NRA.

Cruz, the freshman senator from Texas, basked in a standing ovation for leading the group threatening to filibuster any new gun control legislation. He even challenged Vice President Joe Biden to a one-hour debate on gun rights.

“The target of their legislation is not violent crimes,” he said. “The target of their legislation is law-abiding citizens.”

Perry, who took the stage to a video of him at target practice, said he is trying to poach gun manufacturers from states passing new gun laws.

“Our message to them and everyone in the country: there is still a place that loves freedom in America, where people can pursue their dreams free from the knee-jerk reactions that occur: that place is Texas,” the Texas governor said.

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker thanked the NRA for helping him fend off last year’s recall election. In a pre-recorded video message, he touted laws he signed for conceal-and-carry and “castle doctrine,” which makes it easier to kill an attacker in self-defense.

Jindal, the Louisiana governor, stepped away from budget negotiations in Baton Rouge for the speech. He said that he got “the strongest, most ironclad” protections for gun owners in America added to his state constitution last year.

Jindal, the chairman of the Republican Governors Association, recalled that early in his first term he had to decide whether people should be allowed to keep guns in their cars while at work. Business groups, which he acknowledged is a key part of his base, did not want him to sign the bill.

“Let me tell you something: it wasn’t a hard decision for me. I told my friends I would take the side of freedom every single time,” he said. “And, in Louisiana, freedom won.”

Jindal also touted a law he signed in his first term that made it illegal for government officials to confiscate firearms – which happened after Hurricane Katrina – and for being “one of the first governors” to call for Attorney General Eric Holder’s resignation in the Fast and Furious scandal.

NRA chief lobbyist Chris Cox introduced Santorum, who is very likely to run again, as “a great shot” with a gun.

“Just this last couple of weeks, you stood up when freedom was under assault…and you made a difference,” Santorum told the NRA crowd. “As unpopular as it seemed … you stood for the truth.”

“You folks are warriors,” he added. “You’re not just Second Amendment lovers. You’re freedom lovers, all across the board.”